Forest Grove Kindergarten Blog

Sabotage Much?

Honoring individuality remains the priority but what happens when an individual finds amusement in being a saboteur?

I’ve always been fascinated by the child that marches to the beat of their own drum and breaks free of the expected. It's the authenticity of those moments that makes teachers and parents hope that the creativity and confidence they exemplify at 2, 3, 4… years old remains intact during resume writing, child raising and relationship building.

There is, however another type of child; the saboteur. Spending their free time going against the grain and wreaking havoc on the plans and accomplishments of others. This is an isolating experience for the child that is always being scolded by peers yet can’t help by being inspired by the cause and effect of tense situations.

You know the type, perhaps you've called the school to discuss a situation like this one.

According to the experts, here are some other reasons why children sabotage:

Wanting to stay in one’s comfort zone

A familiarity with failure

A need to be in control

Need for excitement or an adrenaline rush

Concern about others’ opinions

Choosing discontent or despondency over success

And here is what we try to do to correct the habit:

Remind children that they are capable of more.

Enlist a partner who will prevent them from exhibiting sabotaging behaviors.